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Pope Callixtus III
From the longer Wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calixtus_III Pope Callixtus III (Latin: Callistus PP. III, Italian: Callisto III; Valencian: Calixt III; Spanish: Calixto III; 31 December 1378 – 6 August 1458), né Alfons de Borja, was the head of the Catholic Church from 8 April 1455 to his death in 1458. He is the last pope to take the name "Callixtus" upon his election. Alfons de Borja was born in La Torreta, now a neighbourhood of Canals, Valencia – today in Spain – but at that time in the Kingdom of Valencia under the Crown of Aragon. He was the son of Domingo de Borja and Francina Llançol. During the western schism he supported Antipope Benedict XIII, and was the driving force behind Antipope Clement VIII's submission to Pope Martin V in 1429. His early career was spent as a professor of law at the University of Lleida and then as a diplomat in the service of the Kings of Aragon, especially during the Council of Basel (1431–1439). He became a cardinal after reconciling Pope Eugene IV with King Alfonso V of Aragon. He was raised to the papal chair in 1455 as Callixtus III at a very advanced age, as a "compromise candidate" in the papal conclave that year. He is viewed by historians as being extremely pious, a firm believer in the authority of the Holy See and, like the second borgia pope, he went to great lengths to advance his immediate family. In 1456, he issued the papal bull Inter Caetera to Portugal (not to be confused with Inter Caetera of 1493). This bull reaffirmed the Portuguese right to reduce infidels and the Moors to servitude by the earlier bulls Romanus Pontifex and Dum Diversas, thus reaffirming the papal consent to the enslavement of Africans. This confirmation of Romanus Pontifex also gave the Portuguese the military Order of Christ under Prince Henry the Navigator. Inter Caetera of 1456 was in direct opposition, however, to the stance taken by Pope Eugene IV in the 1435 bull Sicut Dudum, where infidels were acknowledged to have been created in the image of God and having souls, which implied that no Christian had the right to take away their liberty. The pope urged a crusade against the Turks who had captured Constantinople in 1453, but his call did not receive support among the Christian princes. On 20 February 1456, Pope Callixtus III elevated two of his nephews to the position of cardinal. The first of them was Rodrigo de Borja ("Borgia" in Italian), who later became Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503), infamous for his alleged corruption and immorality. The second was Luis Julian de Milà. On 29 June 1456, Callixtus ordered the church bells to be rung at noon (see noon bell) as a call to prayer. As the order spread, the ringing of the bells was taken also as a crusading call to lift the Siege of Belgrade (1456). The Siege of Belgrade took place on 22 July and was a notable victory against the Turks. To commemorate this victory, Callixtus III ordered the Feast of the Transfiguration to be held on 6 August. Callixtus ordered a new trial for St. Joan of Arc (c. 1412–1431), at which she was posthumously vindicated. He approved of the founding of the University of Greifswald that took place in the year 1456. Callixtus III's pre-papal coat of arms featured a grazing ox. Category:Biographies Category:Popes Category:Religion